


divide and conquer.

by thicklykeen



Category: Homestuck
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - No Sburb/Sgrub Sessions, Multi, and its my fic so i make what's canon fight me, and karkat is 5'2", dave is 6'0", everyone has magic powers., gamzee and karkat are cousins, john jake jade and jane r all step siblings ahah, karkat and sollux r distant cousins, literally this is gonna be such a disaster but i genuinely love my little disaster so deal with it, more tags r bound to come, probably ooc but im doing my best uwu, terezi is 4'11", terezi is a badass bitch u cant stop her, the striders and the lalondes are blood related, vriska is 5'9"
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-18
Updated: 2018-12-07
Packaged: 2019-07-13 19:39:03
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,039
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16024619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thicklykeen/pseuds/thicklykeen
Summary: You used to think dying was better than living with Bro.





	1. the magician with no eyes.

**Author's Note:**

> hi welcome to my fantasy homestuck au uwu I hope u like it 
> 
> uh definitions and shit will come in the next chapter bc the trolls r humans and they aren't called trolls for their magic powers ahaha

You used to think dying was better than living with Bro.  
It was just something you’d believed from living there so long, that the afterlife was better than home. Now you were here, in Derse, at your dead brother’s commands. Your brother, Dirk, had been beheaded months ago. Dirk had come to you in spirit form, two nights before you bolted out of your old home. Dirk had told you to run, run to Derse where you would become something, someone. You had always dreamed of becoming a magician. Dirk and his boyfriend, Jake, were the only ones to know that you wanted to be a magician. If Bro knew, he’d probably beat the shit out of you. Magic wasn’t something that was accepted in the Strider household, the reasons went unsaid. Dirk and Jake had snuck you playing cards, and even though most decks went missing, you still fucking practiced with what you could.  
And you got good.  
Dirk and Jake had splurged and got you a particularly good card set, the colors black and gold (you’re pretty sure the gold coloring has specks of actual gold in it, which made the numbers and designs glitter in the sun). Bro had never seen these cards, never gotten near them, and you had made sure of it. This deck was one of the only two things you had to remember Dirk by, the second being the honey-colored jacket tied around your waist. The cards shone brightly in the sun as you shuffled them while walking down the streets of Derse. You would probably become the victim of a mugging if you weren’t careful. You could use your cards to fight back, they had sharp edges you’d made sure you’d sharpened yourself, but there’s no way you’d win.  
You had been to Derse once when you were three and your father had actually cared, but being here now, at seventeen, was so much different. The city was a bright splash of purples and pinks, with black mixed in for good measure. You had worn beiges and browns to blend in, but now you just stuck out. Your platinum blond hair and pale, freckled skin only made you stick out worse. You wanted to pull Dirk’s jacket on and and toss the hood up and simply disappear, but pulling your jacket up would just draw more attention.  
The city smelled of baked goods, freshly cut wood, and metal. It was much, much better than the metallic coppery smell of blood you were used to. The smell of baked goods made your stomach rumble, and you realize just how hungry you are. You’d been underfed and hadn’t risked stealing food on your way out of the house. You had to find food.  
As the thought hits you, you run into someone. It knocks both of you down, and your hands immediately go to your sunglasses. The boy in front of you falls with a yelp and immediately scours the ground, snatching something off of it.  
Your cards.  
You immediately scramble in search of them. Quickly, you gather all of them up, gently putting them in your satchel.  
“Dave?” The voice in front of you was male and familiar. Your head snaps up, hands still frozen in the bag and holy shit!  
Holy shit, that’s John Egbert!  
John is Jake’s step-brother. You haven’t seen him in over a year, but he hasn’t changed a bit. A wave of calm washes over you. At least you know someone here. John beams and you give him a small smile back.  
“I didn’t know you lived in Derse,” you say. John gives a soft laugh.  
“Used to live in Prospit, I moved to Derse to practice magic,” John says. Your interest peaks at the mention of magic. John looks to the side, fingers tapping gently on his knee as he crouches.  
“Let’s go, I’ve gotta pick up something for a friend of mine. You can come with if you’d like,” John says. He stands. You nod, also standing and follow John as he walks to the market. You make small talk, asking how Derse is and where he’s been staying for the past year. He replies with the name Terezi Pyrope, oddly familiar to you, but you shrug it off. You don’t know where you’ve heard that name from. When you enter the market, the heat hits you. It’s not like you aren’t used to it, but it still takes you by surprise and you begin to sweat. The crowd is loud and it’s almost as if John has to shout to be able to talk to you, which, for the most part, he does. You follow him blindly. You aren’t well acquainted with the Derse market and you’re horrified you’ll get lost, so you stick closer to John’s side than you should. Every time you pass a vendor selling food, your stomach growls and mouth waters at the sight.  
“Hey, can we get something to eat?” You ask. John looks up at you, considering for a moment.  
“Yeah! What d’you want?” He asks. Another grin graces his face. You shrug, face blank. John takes control of the situation, leading you somewhere with ‘good food’, as he said, and you two pick up a to go version of it. You think it’s soup, since it’s in a small wooden cup. John orders himself his own cup. When you take a sip, the smooth, warm liquid is everything you’d hoped it to be. You’d never doubt John’s judgment on food, but sometimes he didn’t always have the best taste, from what you remembered. This soup, though, was the best thing you’d had in a while.

When you approach the small house John had lead you to, you’ve managed to eat both yours and John’s cup of soup. John had gaped at you when you asked him if he was going to finish his cup, and when he said no, handing it to you, you’d almost downed the whole thing in one go.  
“We’re getting Terezi to make you a meal,” John had said. You’d glanced at him before downing the rest of the contents of the cup.  
Now you stood in front of Terezi’s house, you behind John as he gave a soft knock on the door. A girl with a white dragon-headed stick opens the door.  
“Hey, Terezi!” John says. Terezi grins, tapping her stick (cane?) on the ground, allowing both you and John in.  
“I brought a friend along, if you don’t mind. He’s new here, doesn’t have a place to stay,” John says. He walks into another room, you following.  
“He’s fine, John,” Terezi says and you see John visibly relax. “It would’ve been nice to have a heads up, though,” she says. John lets out a hearty laugh and when you turn around you see Terezi grinning, her teeth are sharp, almost like the incisors of a cat. You shudder. Something else you’d noticed was that Terezi’s house was about as colorful as Derse. It just looked… less good. There were splashes of blues and reds, greens and yellows, every color surrounded the house.  
“Blegh, something smells awful,” Terezi says. When you look over at her, her face is scrunched up in disgust and she’s holding an arm to her nose. There’s nothing to smell, though. There’s nothing cooking and there’s nothing else to smell in the room, unless you count the small smell of the fire burning in the fireplace. Even the fire smells nice, but you’ve always liked the smell of fire. Terezi walks up to John, sniffing at his neck.  
“Not you,” she says, turning away from him and she begins to stalk towards you, waving her cane around softly. When Terezi hits your leg she stops and leans forward to sniff you. When she gets close enough, you tense.  
“You,” she says, shoving a finger into your chest, “smell awful!” You don’t doubt that you do, you’d been walking for days and you hadn’t stopped to wash up.  
“John, get him new clothes and get him to wash up,” Terezi says. John huffs out a small sigh, crossing his arms over his chest and follows her orders. He leads you up the few stairs that get you to the second floor and John leads you to the bathroom.  
“Just a heads up, Terezi is a little… out there. Also, she’s blind, if you couldn’t tell,” he says. You nod, nothing has yet to throw you off about Terezi, but you’re thankful for the heads up. At first, you thought she just had awful taste in most everything color-wise, but now that you know she’s blind you kind of feel bad about your original thoughts.  
“I’ll go get you some clothes and then you can take your time in here, well not too long,” John says. He turns away and toddles off down the hallway, still mumbling to himself. You give a small sigh, looking at your surroundings, and a minute or two later John shows up with an extra pair of clothes. They’re a deep red, and when John hands them to you, you realize just how soft they are. Your current clothes are scratchy and stiff, even a little tight on you since they’re so old.  
“See you when you get out!” John chirps. You give him a nod, and after he’s slipped out, you undress and bathe.

It’s only a few minutes later when you make your way downstairs and find Terezi splayed out on the floor. A girl with her hair in a very messy ponytail is sitting beside her, one leg pulled to her chest as she chats idly with Terezi. You don’t know where John is, but you’re mostly worried about who the girl chatting with Terezi is. When the girl notices you, she lazily lifts her hand in a wave and continues her conversation. Terezi gestures wildly, her hand nearly hitting the girl in the face who quickly scoots backward, letting out a small laugh. You hear a loud crashing from another room, Terezi’s hands fall onto her stomach and the girl lets out a low growl. You know where John is now. John stumbles into the room, giving a sheepish grin to all three of you. You knit your brows in confusion while the girl you don’t know the name of raises her brows, as if waiting for an explanation.  
“Some spices and pots fell,” he says.  
“Good going,” the girl says, knocking her first twice on the floor before standing up. She shifts her way past John and Terezi huffs, sitting up. She clambers to her feet, grabbing the cane by her side and she brushes herself off.  
“Mmm, the room smells nicer,” Terezi says. “Although, there’s something that smells a little too sweet for my liking, but I’ll live,” Terezi says, shrugging. You have Dirk’s jacket pulled on, as much as you would have liked to wash it, you also don’t want to take your eyes off of it.  
“John, how many times have I told you not to mess the kitchen up? You know Vriska hates cleaning it up,” Terezi says. John crosses his arms over his chest.  
“Well, you know I could clean my own mess up,” John says defensively.  
“But then we’d both be dealing with Vriska’s bitching and moaning, neither of us want that,” she says, holding her cane up and pointing it at John’s general direction. John sighs, but nods.  
“Yeah, true,” he says. You’re lost. You don’t know who Vriska is, but you think it’s the girl who was sitting with Terezi just a minute ago, but you can’t be sure. John stalks over to your side.  
“Vriska’s the girl who just walked into the kitchen,” John says. “And is absolutely in love with Terezi,” he adds under his breath. You snort. Terezi’s head perks up and she taps her cane on the ground.  
“Well, since you’ve been banished from the kitchen for the next week, don’t interrupt me John you know I’m right, looks like Vriska will be making every meal for a while,” a grimace crosses Terezi’s face, and John looks downright defeated. You don’t understand why, but you think you will soon. 

As dinner rolls around, the smell of something burning wafts through the house and it takes everything in you not to gag. John, on the other hand, willingly gags. He makes it loud, probably hoping Vriska hears it.  
“Fuck off, Egbert!” You hear Vriska shout from the kitchen. Terezi lets out a loud cackle from her spot on the couch while John just glares at the opening to the kitchen. You let a small grin slip and you get back to talking with the other two.  
“I don’t understand why she thinks she has to take over cooking every time I fuck the kitchen up,” John says, throwing his hands up. You hear a loud thump from the wall, you think Vriska’s kicked it. John scowls.  
“Well, John, if I fucked the kitchen up as much as you did, I think I’d understand where Vriska was coming from,” Terezi says. You snort and John looks offended.  
“John, you don’t even have an excuse! I’m blind and don’t make as much as a mess in that kitchen as you do!” Terezi says through cackles, her grin taking up most of her face. John just rolls his eyes and huffs.  
“Well technically, I’m kind of blind.”  
“Don’t even try it, John. You’ve got glasses.”  
That comment seems to settle the case, and it seems Vriska is finally done with dinner. She clambers into the room, her hair in the messiest bun you’ve ever seen, and throws her arm into the dining room. You all glance uneasily at each other and stand, Vriska crosses her arms.  
“Stop stalling and get it over with,” she hisses. You, ever the brave soldier, walk into the dining room first and notice that only three plates are set out. Weird. You sit and wait for the other three to file in, but you watch Vriska leave, hearing her footsteps pounding up the stairs.  
“She gets a little upset when she has to cook,” Terezi says with a small shrug. John lets out a snort and you think you can hear him say “A little?” Now, you truly get a look at the meal in front of you, and it is burnt to its finest. Terezi finds her cup and lifts it.  
“Cheers,” she says.  
“To suffering,” John says and you chorus a second later.  
“So, Dave, how’d you get to Derse?” Terezi asks. John looks at you curiously, you hadn’t told him. You shrug nonchalantly.  
“I think I saw something like my brother’s spirit? Told me to come here. That, or I was more fucked up than I’ve ever been,” you say. You witness John glance at Terezi and her head tilts to the side, as if taking interest in what you said.  
“So you can see apparitions? Or actual ghosts?” Terezi asks. You shrug again.  
“They’re strong enough he can hear them speak. Terezi, I couldn’t do that until I’d stayed with you for four months,” John says, now intently staring at Terezi. She hums.  
“Situations depend. What situation were you in before you came here, Dave?” Terezi asks. You shift uncomfortably, suddenly all eyes are turned on you and you don’t like it. You haven’t been one to spill your guts or family secrets, and you sure as hell aren’t going to tell a strange girl you barely know. John looks at you, expecting you to just give this information up.  
“I, uh, it wasn’t good,” you manage to utter. That’s the most you’ll give her. She hums again, taking a bite of whatever was on her plate. Her face shifts to mild disgust before turning back to curiosity. She turns back to John and taps her fingers on the wooden table.  
“Like what kind of ‘it wasn’t good?’ The ‘oh, I might be able to live a few more days’ or the ‘if I don’t get out of here, I’m going to die’ kind if bad?” She asks. You feel like you’re being interrogated and you want to get the fuck out of there. You think Terezi means well, but you can never be too sure of the people around you, especially the ones you just met.  
“Uh, the second one,” you say, too uncomfortable to repeat what she said. She nods.  
“I think I’m going to need to talk to you later, Dave,” she says. Your voice is shaky when you say okay, to nervous as to what she means by ‘talk to you later’, and you try to finish your meal as quickly as you can. It’s agonizingly slow, the burnt taste to much for your mouth too take all at once. Terezi is the first one to finish, she tells you to meet her in her study once your finished, and you didn’t even know that there was a fucking study in this house. You waste as much time eating as you can once she’s gone.

You knock on the door of the study, John leaving your side and ambling into Vriska’s room to bother her about something you know she understands far better than him. When Terezi opens the door, she sniffs and lets out a smile.  
“Didn’t think you’d come,” she says.  
"Thought about not coming,” you say. “Decided it wasn’t a good decision.”  
“Smart,” Terezi says, shifting out of the doorway, allowing you space to jam yourself inside. The study is a mess, papers and books are strewn on the floor, and you see a particularly inky side of the room, blue, you think. Terezi lets the door close, the slam startling you. She snaps and you watch blue flames ooz up onto her wrist. You stare in awe, but the slight twinge of fear you feel in your gut is undeniable.  
She’s going to burn you. __  
She simply turns, though, and finds her way to her fireplace, nearly managing to catch a book on fire. When she ignites the wood, the flames stay blue. It looks like the fire you saw in the living room, you take a guess she’s the one who set that wood aflame. Terezi shakes her hands, extinguishing the flames.  
“You don’t know who I am, do you, Dave?” She asks. Her voice is smoother, a little like rough cotton. It’s not as scratchy as it was before, and she seems to have lowered her volume. You shake your head.  
“No, I don’t,” you say. Terezi lets out a small laugh. She slips her sunglasses from her eyes, settling them into her hair. Her eyes are a bright shade of red. They’re red, completely devoid of anything but the color red. It clicks.  
“I’m the Magician with No Eyes, Dave.”


	2. defected white lies.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terezi flips her sunglasses back down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> had a little ao3 mishap! all good now
> 
> whoop definition time:
> 
> CROW: A Crow is a magician who uses their power for both combat and creating. This is a pretty good majority of the Magician population.
> 
> CREATOR: Creators are Magicians who use their power solely for creating, on the rare occasion they will use their power for combat (more than likely to defend themselves). Creators are also pretty easy to find, often times they are merchants or artisans.
> 
> WIELDER: Wielders use their power solely for combat and are much easier to find in military life rather than your normal everyday setting.

Terezi flips her sunglasses back down.  
You blink, shocked. Terezi Pyrope. Of course, you knew the name, nearly everyone did. She was a judge as much as she was a Crow. She was also a magic teacher, helping people harness their power, but there were much better than her. She wasn’t known for teaching magic. She was known for exacting the truth. Terezi’s taps her cane on the floor, bringing you back. You look at her and she looks deathly calm, her lips pressed into a thin line like she hasn’t told you something so groundbreaking.  
And in reality, she hasn’t.  
“Don’t shut down on me, cool kid,” she says. She taps your leg with her cane, a little harder than you’d like, and begins to walk around the room.  
“I could spell you, make you tell the truth, but I won’t. Not going to invade your privacy, _yet_ ,” Terezi says. You know she’s powerful, but you have no idea what kind of spells she has or what they do. You’re a little scared to find out, too.  
“I hope you know, though, I’m not afraid to do it right now,” Terezi says, leaning closer to you. You gulp. She hums, satisfied and walks away. Her boots click against the floor as she walks towards the fire and sits in the plush chair in front of it, it’s a greenish-blue and she seems to sink into it with ease.  
“Sit,” she says. She points at the chair in front of her. You follow her orders, gingerly stepping your way over some stray ink and papers, and sit.  
“You don’t quite seem to know what’s going on,” Terezi says. Her fingers are tapping the arm of the chair. Her long nails don’t clack against the soft fabric, and somehow, that relaxes you. You’re still tense, still unsure of what is completely going on, but when she speaks you listen.  
“I think you’re a true magician,” Terezi says. You blink, shocked. There’s no way. You’d never done anything spectacular, and most true magicians started showing signs at a young age. You couldn’t recall anything you’d done. Terezi shrugs.  
“It’s just a theory, but I think I’m right,” she says. “You said you saw your dead brother?”  
“Yeah,” you say. Dirk wasn’t headless this time, but it didn’t matter because there had been an obscene amount of blood covering him. He’d touched you, too. Held you when you had panicked and kept repeating that he was dead because he was dead. But he was in your bedroom, holding you tightly as you cried.  
“What all happened?” She asks. You shrug lamely.  
“He just… told me to come here. Didn’t say anything else. Dirk just told me to run to Derse. I think he knew I’d be better off here,” you say. Terezi snorts.  
“You’d be better off anywhere but here. You just aren’t meant to be a good little Prospit boy, are you?” Terezi says. She crosses her legs and you scoff, slightly offended.  
“I’ll have you know, I would make it fine in Prospit,” you hiss. Terezi barks out a laugh.  
“Hilarious, really. You should be a comedian instead of a magician,” she says. You stand, ready to leave. Terezi stays seated.  
“You do realize Prospit is nothing like Derse, right, Dave? Prospit doesn’t accept the concept of magicians like we do. You enter Prospit with an unhinged power like right now, you’ll wish you’d listened to me a little better,” Terezi hisses. You narrow your eyes at her, but her little spiel gets you to sit back down.  
“Now that I hopefully have your complete and undivided attention again, you show signs of being a true magician,” Terezi says. She flexes her fingers in front of her face as if she can see them.  
“What?” You ask incredulously. Terezi nods.  
“Yeah. Dave, your brother’s spirit spoke to you. Not many people’s spirit can do that,” Terezi says. “It could be because you were in danger, but your brother came to you months after he died, right?”  
“Yeah,” you softly murmur. She nods and taps her fingers on her cane again.  
“Your brother is either an extremely strong spirit, or you’re an extremely strong magician,” she says. You sigh, falling back into the chair and rubbing a hand over your face.  
“I don’t know. I don’t fucking know!” You say, distressed. Terezi lets a lopsided grin father her face. You want to do something to make her understand how distressed you are, but you’re playing the better man and you won’t hit anyone.  
“Was your brother a Magician? If he wasn’t, was anyone around him a Magician?” Terezi asks. You think for a moment, sliding down in the chair.  
“I… Dirk wasn’t a Magician, at least not to my knowledge, but his boyfriend was,” you say. Terezi nods and pulls her legs into the chair, sitting criss-cross. She looks like a tiny child bundled up like that, and you wonder how she ever became this powerful.  
“Would you be the first in a line of Magicians?” she asks. You shrug.  
“I don’t know. I think if I was a magician, I’d be the first, but the topic of magic really never… it never came up around the house for… reasons,” you say. Terezi sighs, and plays with the tips of her hair for a moment. Her face is scrunched up, mouth turned into a frown and nose so scrunched it’s making her glasses slip off them.  
“I take it you don’t know those reasons?” She asks. You give a quiet “no” in response. She hisses in frustration. Terezi stands, dousing the fire, and begins to leave the study. You stand from your chair and follow her out of the room, nearly hitting Vriska with the door in the process. She screeches and halts, and she looks more than a little upset.  
“Watch it!” She hisses before trudging away. Something ticks your radar off about that girl, you don’t know if you should trust her or not. Terezi lets a disgruntled look cross her face, she seems a bit upset herself. After Terezi exits, you tail her back into the living room. John sits on the floor, and he’s writing something down in a journal. You quirk an eyebrow, getting a little lost in thought before a knock from the door startles you. Terezi perks up, a wild grin appearing on her face as she makes her way to the door. A boy with an atrocious undercut is at the door, he’s in a wheelchair, you notice. The boy is decked out in darker shades of brown, and he’s got a bag sitting on his lap. He gives a sheepish wave and smiles to Terezi and she lowers down to sniff him.  
“Tavros!” Terezi shouts with glee, throwing her arms around him. Tavros awkwardly hugs her back, putting a hand on Terezi’s shoulder blade. When Terezi steps back, her hands are on her hips and her posture is a little more confident than usual.  
“Whatcha need?” She asks. Tavros makes his way in, he glances around giving you and John small waves. Tavros turns his attention back to Terezi.  
“Have you heard from Equius? He’s supposed to be making something for me, but I haven’t been able to get in contact with him,” Tavros asks. Terezi’s mouth twists as if she’s thinking about something before she taps two fingers on her cane and shakes her head.  
“Nope, ask Nepeta. She might know,” Terezi says. Tavros flicks himself in the head.  
“Duh. Why didn’t I think of that?” He says, mostly to himself. Terezi relaxes, her shoulders drooping a bit and he back arching less.  
“Do you have an extra room I can stay in? I’m exhausted,” Tavros says, fiddling in his chair uncomfortably.  
“I can arrange… something,” Terezi says, making a wide gesture with one hand. She looks unsure, but Tavros just nods.  
“If you can’t, I can find somewhere to stay,” he says hurriedly. Terezi waves him off with a hand.  
“Shush, we’ll work something out,” she says. Tavros falls silent, but he looks a little upset and unsure himself. He huffs but doesn’t argue with Terezi anymore. He probably knows she’ll win.  
“Alright, since John’s been banned from the kitchen, and Vriska’s in a pissy mood. Dave, can you cook?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr @funkyhypnotic


	3. smoke signals.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> you feel like you're suffocating.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my week has been fUCked and that's why I'm just getting around to posting this even though it's been done for like three days.  
> anyways, i met adam silerva, becky albertalli, and david arnold and that was the wildest shit ever i am so happy bros

You'd made a small dish in the end. You were the only one who could cook relatively well, even if it was only one thing, out of the five in the house. Vriska also didn't make any sign of showing up for dinner, to eat it or make it. When you'd finished making the food, Terezi had made her way upstairs and Vriska had tailed her down when she came back. Although she only snatched a plate and went back to her room, it felt a little relaxing to see Vriska out of her room. Clearly, whatever work she was doing wasn't so important she had to miss dinner for it. It'd also been decided that Tavros would room with you for the night. you'd been uneasy at the prospect of sharing rooms. You'd only ever shared a room with Dirk, and no matter how many locks you put on the door, Bro always found a way in. Tavros seemed sweet, though. You were sure if it came to killing a fly, he'd cry as soon as he had done the job.

You’re wide awake. You don’t know how you’re still awake, considering you’re so exhausted, but you are. You’re rolling a pen you found around in your fingers, your nerves eating you alive. You have to get out of this house. Despite the house being so spacious, it feels tight. You drop the pen on the floor, gripping your blanket tightly, your knuckles white, and shove your head into your knees, pushing your sunglasses into your hair. You untangle yourself, tapping your fingers on the floor before you stand snatching your bag. Tavros doesn’t stir when you open the door and it creaks, and you release the breath you’d held. Quickly and quietly you make your way downstairs and to the front door.   
“Where d’you think you’re going, buddy boy?” A female voice pipes up. It’s not Terezi’s, so it has to be the only other girl in the house. Vriska. Exactly what you need right now, you think. 

“Out,” you say. Vriska snorts, and you hear something clatter to the floor. She lets out a groan of frustration. 

“Don’t lie to me. I’m not John, I’m not stupid,” Vriska says. Immediately, you turn to around to face her and defend your best friend.

“Shut your fucking mouth,” you say. Vriska simply shrugs. You take a look at the spot she’s in. There are about twelve dice in front of her and a fuck ton of mechanical parts surrounding her. All are a dark shade of blue, and you think her dice glitter. 

“Anyways, back on track. Where are you going?” She asks again.

“Out,” you say. You actually have no clue where you’re going, you just know you’ll end up somewhere. Maybe it’s home, no not home, that place had almost killed you, maybe a nice cozy alleyway, or maybe you’d end up back here. Back into this safe, warm, and loving environment. Into this house that you could call a home if you built the relationships with these people up. This would be a home, this could be your home.

You feel like you’re suffocating. 

You practically rip the door off its hinges to get the fuck out of there, Vriska watching you as you do. She doesn’t try to stop you, and deep down in your heart, you’re thankful for that. You think if she did try to help, something like John would have done, you’d have punched her. But she didn’t, so you didn’t get to do anything you’d regret.   
You end up walking the streets. They aren’t busy, only a few people here and there. Some of them drunk, some of them sober, but no matter what, they’d asked you if you were okay. Who wouldn’t? You’re a frail and pale kid, sticking out only because of your height and skin tone. It also didn’t help with the fact that you were shaking. Maybe you should just go back to Terezi’s house, go back to safety. But the house had felt so suffocating, so tight, so fucking jam packed. That’s not how a house was supposed to feel, you think. But your own home had felt like home when in reality it was only bloodshed and anger. When it was really only hurt. 

At one point, you begin to cry. This draws more attention, but now the drunk people on the streets stay away from you, the sober ones passing by sometimes. When you gather yourself, you resort to only sniffles and stop in front of a store. It’s a gem and plant store, something that could possibly make someone quite a bit of money. You don’t have any money, you remember. You could easily pick the lock to the store, it was something you learned to do while you lived in your house. If you wanted food, you had to pick some locks and sneak around. One of those proving much harder than the other. 

Picking the lock is easy, even if you fumble around with it for a few moments. Easily, you slide into the store. Some store owners, especially if they’re rooted in one place for their career, keep their profits in their store. Most of them also live in or above their store, so you’re running a risky business stealing money right now. After a few minutes of rooting around, you eventually find the place where the money is hidden. It’s inside a trash can with the lid on top, quite inconspicuous, but you were bound to find the money eventually. What you don’t expect, though, is that the owner is still awake and is now in the same room as you. 

“Hey!” The gravelly voice calls out. You freeze, panic seizing you, and you reach for a sword that isn’t there. That’s when the real panic sets in, you don’t have a weapon to defend yourself with. You bolt, running to the door of the store before you physically can’t move again. The owner, a boy who looks to be about your age, grabs your arm, and you can move again. You drop the bag in your hands and the boy kicks it back inside the store before he begins dragging you down the street. You know exactly where you’re headed, and you’re dreading every bit of it.

 

“So, Karkat, you still haven’t told me the little guest you bought along. The whole cause of this big shebang, so get on with it,” Terezi says, yawning. She doesn’t have her glasses on, and Vriska is half-asleep on her lap. John is somewhere in the kitchen, taking advantage of the fact that Vriska is too tired to stop him. If you remember correctly, Tavros had bid farewells, grabbed some snacks, and went off on his journey to that Equius guy.

“It’s… It’s me,” you say. Your voice quivers, the boy who had brought you in is trembling with anger. Terezi’s eyebrow quirks up. You had only been in Derse for two days and you’d already manage to fuck everything up. Just fucking perfect.

“Interesting,” she hums. “You’ve been here for only a few days, Dave, I know. But here’s some information, we don’t take kindly to outsiders.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr @funkyhypnotic


	4. divinus.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Suddenly, you are at home, you are with Bro, and you are not safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thank god we finally have our first spell yall and it's said by terezi  
> also i need a beta reader for this fic and if ur down my other homestuck fics so like comment down below or message me on tumblr @funkyhypnotic
> 
> anywyas here's the spell tererzi uses:  
> ALL RISE: Terezi can make anyone in a 20 foot radius tell the truth and only the truth. Lasts until she casts another spell or says “ALL LIARS BELIEFS.”

You want to run until you can’t breathe anymore and your legs give out. 

There’s something keeping you rooted to your seat though, and you don’t know what it is. Maybe it’s the judging eyes of John. He’d never seen this side of you, the one that had to scratch and bleed and steal for survival like it was instinct. Because it was. It wasn’t second nature, it was exactly what you did anytime you needed to. The ways had crawled their way out of the place you tried to hide them, out of a place that was dark and gritty and you didn’t want to see, and you wanted to completely rid yourself of it. As much as you hated to admit it, you were a liar and thief more than you were a magician. 

As you’re self-loathing takes over, Karkat and Terezi talk. You’ve tuned them out and you’re staring at the wall, and then you notice Terezi move. Her hand is propped up and there’s a smirk that’s overflowing her face.

“ _All Rise_ ,” she says, snapping. A rush of euphoria washes over you. Your fingers tingle and your stomach does a flip, this must be what magic feels like.

“Why’d you go and steal from dear old Karkat, Dave?” Terezi asks. You’re formatting a lie in your head, but the truth comes out before you can say it. 

“I was running off and I didn’t have any money,” you say. Terezi’s smile falls, and she sinks back into the couch.

“Why’d you choose Karkat’s store?” She asks.

“I know that most people who have stores in one spot keep their money in their store. Not a smart move for store owners, but very good for people who have to steal things for a living.”

“Why were you running away, Dave?” Terezi asks. The unease washes over you. You can’t tell a lie, either. You physically can’t and you think it’s because of Terezi’s spell.

“I’m scared,” you state. “I’m scared because this feels like it could be a home. This is a home, and I know that if I stay I’ll fuck it up. And you know what? I already have because we’re doing this right now. I’m so fucking scared that I’m going to begin to care for you people, think you’re on my side, but I know you’ll stab me in the back if I’m not careful enough.”

A simple, stunned silence passes over the two people in the room who are awake. You hear John stop rustling around in the kitchen and think that he’s heard you. You wish you could go back in time, wish you could take the last hour back, take everything back, and go back to before you ran away. You wished you’d never ran into John and you wished he’d never fucking taken you here.

You want to go home, but you are home.

“ _All liars beliefs_ ,” Terezi says, taking you out of your head. Karkat looks slightly shocked, and you feel the pressure that was once on your chest leave. Another thing is that you feel a little freed after admitting all of this, after admitting that you are fucking scared. There are eyes on you, everyone but Vriska is staring at, and you think that John is in the doorway of the kitchen, gaping at you. You’re nervous, to fucking nervous. You begin to scratch at your bicep, scratching the skin raw, but not enough to break it and make it bleed. God let you out of here, let you out of here. Please, God, let you out of here. 

Karkat’s grip on you slacks. 

You bolt.

“Dave!” You hear John shout, and someone is bounding towards you moments later. You fiddle with the door as fast as you can, your hands are shaking for you to much to quickly unlock the door though, and someone grabs you by the back of the shirt. You gasp and try to escape their grip. 

Suddenly, you are at home, you are with Bro, and you are not safe. There is nothing in your hands to protect you from Bro and there are tears in your eyes, and you can’t let him see them because if he does he will actually fucking kill you. You aren’t sure where you are suddenly, the world disassociates from under you, and you are so, so scared. You can hear yourself gasping for breath and you are scrunched up, hands over your ears and you think you’re crying but you aren’t really sure and you just want everything to fucking stop.  
It does, somehow. 

Slowly, you uncurl yourself. You wipe your eyes and look around. John is frozen in place, he’s pulling Vriska back and Vriska looks like she’s about to claw his throat out if he doesn’t let her go. Terezi looks bewildered, standing up from the couch it looks like she’s feeling around for her cane. Karkat hasn’t moved at all though. He just looks horrified, and his hand is in midair where he was holding your arm. You don’t think he meant to let go of you, but you want to thank every star in the heavens that made him let you go. The room, though time has somehow stopped, still feels too tight. Too small. You race through the front door, and to the backyard. Terezi’s, maybe John or Vriska’s, garden is beautiful. The lush growth of flowers, trees, and shrubs makes it easier to hide and makes everything feel less like it’s closed in. It feels good out here. You easily find a closed in place of shrubbery and flowers, and you tuck yourself away in there. You’re exhausted, emotionally and physically. 

That’s how you are most of the time though. 

You stretch yourself out on the grass, taking your shirt off to use it as a pillow. As if it were a wave, sleep overcomes you easily and quickly. You don’t feel like you’re drowning though. You welcome the wave, welcome the sleep that you know you need.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr @funkyhypnotic


	5. clockwork.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> stupid, stupid, stupid.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> high key hate this chapter but yknow what yall it rlly b like that sometimes  
> i might rewrite it sometime soon but im probably about to start rewriting my taz fic i wrote a few months ago, so keep ur eyes peeled for that

When you wake up, there's an unsettled feeling in your stomach.  
You don't know if it's because you're hungry, or because you're thirsty, or because you just feel angry, but you're upset. There's one main goal though, you need to grab your stuff as quickly and quietly as possible, and abscond out of Terezi's house. You doubt you'll have an easy escape, John's an early riser, always has been and always will be, so that will be a problem you'll have to dodge. You'll have to get some food too, you'll be on the road for a while more than likely.  
God, you shouldn't have come here.  
Easily, you slide off the ground and find your way out of the garden. There's a window to the room you're, well were, staying in. Maybe you can climb the wall into the room, you'd gotten really good at that at home. You start to scale the wall, but the rocks hurt your hands and there's wood paneling that's too slippery for the souls of your shoes to grip. Nevertheless, you make your way up the wall, nearly falling several times. You didn't think about opening the window, you'll fall and you'll probably break your leg.  
Stupid, stupid, stupid.  
You try anyway. As quietly as possible, you open the window. You still open the window noisily, noisier than you would like, and you fear that someone is going to come upstairs and find you. As fast as you can, you climb in the room through the window. You roll as softly as possible into the room, which still isn't as quiet as you would like it to be. There's a body in the bed, and they are very clearly awake. Or awakening, thanks to you opening the window. There's a mass of black hair and dark skin and you think that it's Terezi with her short hair and you wouldn't put it past her to stay in your room to catch you, but it's not Terezi.  
It's Karkat.  
He scrambles to his feet, which only makes him fall out of the bed and you freeze in fear. He opens his mouth and you think he's going to yell and you are absolutely horrified that he's going to get Terezi, attract John or even Vriska, and you don't know what to do. Tears begin to cloud your vision, your body going into panic mode and nearly hitting the ground. You throw your hands over your head, and Karkat looks like he's seen a ghost.  
"I... Are you okay?" Karkat asks, lowering his hands. They had been in a defensive position, ready to fight you off if need be. You don't say anything only let out a wheezy breath and begin to look for your bag quickly, carelessly knocking things around. It's loud, you know, and you should be much more careful, but you need out of here and you need out of here now.  
"If you don't stop, I'm gonna have to like... take you downstairs or something," Karkat says. Your whip your head over to him.  
"Please, god, please don't. I can't do that, you can't do that, not now, just... please," you say. There's an ugly desperate pleading in your voice that you don't like, that you don't want to be there, and you want to tear your own throat out hearing it. Karkat falters. You continue looking for your bag.  
"I think they brought your bag downstairs," Karkat says softly, his gravelly voice making it louder than he probably intended. Of course, they would bring your bag downstairs. John lives here, John knows how you react when you get scared.  
"Of course it is," you say bitterly. Karkat raises his brows confused.  
"That bag has my cards in it, my jacket, it has literally everything that means something to me in it, of course, they took it," you say, panic seeping into your voice. You begin to claw at your palms, scratching them red and raw.  
"I... I feel like this is my fault, somehow," Karkat says. You heave out an angry sigh.  
"It's not yours. It's mine for being so stupid, mine for getting caught. It's my fault for trying to just go home where I'd probably just end up dead anyway," you say. Karkat looks slightly mortified at your statement, but you don't care enough to reassure him you're kidding. You think you're kidding about the last part, at least.  
"I can try and go get it for you," Karkat offers. You run your hands through your hair and it takes everything in you not to kick something.  
"No, no. It's fine, I'll just... I'll just go down there with you," you say. Karkat looks uneasy at your statement, and you feel like you're going to be sick yourself. You walk over to the door and let it swing open, Karkat following you once you exit.  
"Are you sure about this?" Karkat asks.  
"I tried to steal from you, why are you so worried about how I feel?" you ask, voice laced with passive aggressiveness. Karkat's jaw sets and he stiffens from behind you.  
"If you don't want the help, fine," he huffs. "All you had to do was tell me."  
Vriska is the first one to notice you, much to your dismay. Her eyes seem to light up and she pops off the couch to come collect you, but John stops her. You clench your fists and freeze, but take sharp inhale of breath and move forward.  
“Where’s Terezi?” you ask. Vriska quirks an eyebrow up and John looks shocked.  
“She’s in the kitchen,” John says. You nod and begin your way there.  
It’s time you two had a talk.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr and twitter @funkyhypnotic


	6. the assassination of everything.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> you just need someone to listen for once

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> while doing the hype: hey gamers! lets get this dub! 
> 
> anyway, hey! welcome back to my fic, shits finna get real busy w christmas coming up and all, but i'll update when i can. enjoy the chapter and happy holidays!

"I don't intend on making pleasantries with you," Terezi says when you walk into the kitchen. You tighten your hands into fists, making your knuckles white. 

"Then we won't," you say. Terzi nods, happily obliging. She hops off of the kitchen counter and stands in front of you. Her hands are crossed on her cane before she raps it on the floor. 

“What do you want, Dave?” she asks. You let out a shaky sigh and close your eyes.

“I want to explain myself, explain everything. I just… I need to explain what I’ve done to you, and why I’ve done it,” you say. Terezi snorts.

“It’s funny how you just assume I’ll listen to you. How do I know you aren’t lying to me, Dave? How do I know that you aren’t trying to manipulate me?” Terezi asks, leaning closer to your face. You yank your shirt, twisting and pulling the fabric in an upset way.

“I’m telling the truth, I swear I am,” you say.

“But I can’t ever know that,” Terezi says, her smile wide. It takes everything in you not to let out a fretful sob as you try and look Terezi in the eyes through her glasses. She has to believe you, you need her to believe you. It’s scary how desperate you feel. You haven’t felt this desperate since the last time you strifed with Bro in your backyard and he stabbed you in the stomach a little too deep, a little too close to a vital organ, and you thought you were going to die. You were so desperate, so upset, so fucking scared that you weren’t going to make it. You had never felt so scared or so desperate in your life. You’d never wanted to feel that scared again in your life, but you’re back into that shit show. Of course you can’t ever get what you want, you’ve never been able to have your dreams, or anything you wanted for that matter. Life’s a fucking joke and you just seem to be the punchline. 

“I just… please, just listen to me for this one time. You don’t have to listen to me anymore after this, I just need you to listen this one time,” you say. Terezi hums, cocking her head to the left and scrunches her face up as if she’s thinking.

“All right, to my study we go,” Terezi says, leading you to her study again. The familiar scent of books and ink, and even new wood for that matter, fills your nostrils. You haven’t missed being in Terezi’s study, but it’s the only private place you can talk. When you had passed the living room, you felt the eyes of everyone on you. You felt as if they were judging you, even Vriska who had no right to judge you. Vriska really didn’t have a right to judge anything, for that matter. You walked shamefully behind Terezi, wishing the world would swallow you whole. You just wished you could disappear from where you are right now, and maybe that’s because you can’t seem to take anything right now. All you need to do is talk to Terezi, explain what’s wrong and explain why everything is so fucked over with you.

You just need someone to _listen_ for once. 

You collapse into the chair in front of Terezi. She sits her cane against the side of the arm, and you feel like the dragon head on the top is judging you in some way. You digress, you came in here to talk, and talk you will.

“What do you need to explain to me, Dave? What could you possibly explain to me that would make me ever think about not arresting you for robbing Karkat’s shop?” Terezi asks, her voice laced with a hint of malice. 

“Nothing will, Terezi. I know how you are, I’ve studied you in the papers, but I just need you to listen. I robbed Karkat’s shop because I was scared. I was going back home because I was scared of here, but I already told you that. I’m scared of what is going to happen. I’m scared that my Bro will find me. Terezi, I’m just fucking scared. You don’t have to believe me, but I just want you to know I robbed Karkat’s store out of impulse. I was running away and I needed money if I wanted to survive. I’m sorry, I really am sorry for causing this much trouble. I can leave if that’s what you want,” you ramble. Terezi looks at you thoughtfully. You feel as though you could start crying right now, but you keep your face stony and stoic; you won’t break, not right now at least. 

“I believe you,” Terezi says. 

“I-really?” you ask, shocked. Terezi nods, playing with her fingers in her lap. You’re nervous, but you feel as though a weight has been lifted off your shoulders. You take in a deep breath, push up your sunglasses, and wipe the tears from your eyes. 

“John told me about your living situation when you disappeared the other night,” she says. Oh, so this is a pity thing?

“If you’re letting me stay out of pity, along with not arresting me out of pity, don’t even bother. I don’t want that bullshit,” you bark. You don’t mean to be so angry, but you don’t want anyone’s pity. Pity is for fucking losers, and that was a lesson your Bro taught you.

“I’m not letting you stay out of pity; I’m also not charging you out of pity. Dave, I could easily have you thrown into jail even if I lied, I’m the most trusted lawyer around these parts. So, listen to me, you will get your act together, and you will stay in that guest bedroom, or so help me I will have you arrested for robbing Karkat’s store. I don’t care if you were an abused child or not, I’m letting you off the hook this time, and this time only,” she says. She’s nose to nose with you when she’s finished her speech and you realize she’s serious. You breathe in and let your breath out once Terezi has settled back into her seat.

“Karkat’s not pressing charges?” you ask, something like morbid curiosity forming in your stomach. “Why?”

“He didn’t think it was right to,” she says. “I may not agree with him all the time, but he thought that if you were stealing from him, you needed the money. Karkat’s store isn’t very booming in business.”

“Most stores like his do have booming business’ though,” you say, confused. 

“But there are so many of them in Derse, and Karkat isn’t exactly liked by our entire population thanks to the Alternian Empire. That’s why he doesn’t use his real last name when communicating with people, but his looks usually give away who he is,” Terezi says, shrugging. “Seriously, Dave. You’re welcome here, even out of the goodness of my heart. This isn’t out of pity, and that’s the most important thing I want you to take from me.”

“Thank you, Terezi. Really,” you say. Just like that, the conversations over. You two sit in the study for a few minutes before you get up and leave, making your way to the living room. You sit beside Karkat when you get in there.

“Thanks, Karkat, for, uh, for not pressing charges. Means a lot,” you say. Karkat looks at you.

“Doesn’t mean anything,” he says. You nod and stare down at your lap. John has fucked off somewhere else and only the gods know where Vriska is. Maybe you could get used to this. Not knowing where people are in the house and not having the creeping paranoia that at any second you’d be pulled into a fight. You think you could get used to the fleeting guests, all of which seem kind enough. These are things you can get used to. You take in a shaky breath.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me on tumblr @funkyhypnotic

**Author's Note:**

> follow me on tumblr @funkyhypnotic


End file.
